Edmonton Oilers defenceman Evan Bouchard was knocked out of Team Canada’s quarter-final game against the U.S. Thursday after being on the receiving end of a dirty hit.

He took the hit just 6:12 into the first period of the game, when Bouchard skated the puck into the American zone. U.S. defenceman Ryan Lindgren stepped up on Bouchard, laying a hit that saw his shoulder catch him right in the head.

Bouchard’s head bounced off the ice, and he appeared to be out cold before needing to be helped off the ice. A video review took place to confirm the penalty, with Lindgren being issued a five-minute major for a hit to the head and a game misconduct.

Canada would go on to win the game 4-0.

“You don’t want to see guys go down,” Canada teammate Morgan Rielly said to TSN’s Brit Dort during the first intermission.. “Obviously, he’s a very important player for us, a very talented player. We need guys to step up, take on more ice time and responsibility.”

Seeing Bouchard go down is of great concern for the defenceman, who reportedly played through concussion like symptoms during the Oilers’ first-round playoff series against the Anaheim Ducks. Oilers GM Stan Bowman denied those reports.

Bouchard had been a key cog in Canada’s success thus far in the tournament, helping them go 7-0 during the round-robin, scoring a goal and six points through those games. He’s played in all situations for the team, posting a tournament-leading +14 rating and averaging almost 23 minutes of ice time.

There was no update on Bouchard’s condition at the time of writing, but given the severity of the hit, it wouldn’t be a surprise if he missed the remainder of the tournament.

Zach Laing is Oilersnation’s managing editor, and The Nation Network’s news director. He also makes up one-half of the Daily Faceoff DFS Hockey Report. He can be followed on X at @zjlaing, or reached by email at zach.laing@bettercollective.com.

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